New data from the Health Ministry Tuesday showed that 498 people with COVID-19 were hospitalized in serious condition in the country, up from 446 on Sunday evening.
The Health Ministry said there were 65,259 confirmed new infections on Monday, and 62,210 new cases Sunday. Both figures marked daily records.
The Health Ministry had not updated its COVID data dashboard in two days, blaming technical problems, but these appeared to have been solved by Tuesday evening.
The ministry said that of the 498 serious cases, 135 were in critical condition. Of those 100 were on ventilators and 13 were hooked up to an ECMO machine.
Another 907 patients were hospitalized in mild or moderate condition. Meanwhile, 8,129 medical staff were currently unavailable due to infection or exposure.
The number of serious cases has climbed as officials scramble to recalibrate their response to the Omicron variant, which has caused staggering numbers of infections in recent weeks, but fewer deaths than previous outbreaks.
The Health Ministry said Tuesday it will continue to offer fourth vaccine doses to Israelis over 60 and at-risk groups, despite a study released Monday indicating the fourth shot does not provide sufficient protection against Omicron. Initial data showed the current widespread Omicron variant is able to bypass the vaccine in many cases.
But health officials have said the dose’s effect of significantly increasing antibody counts in the blood could still help protect people from serious illness.
Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman called on Tuesday for an end to the widespread use of the “Green Pass” certificate, given to vaccinated individuals, those who’ve recovered from the disease or those with a negative test from the previous 48 hours.
“There is no medical or epidemiological logic in the Green Pass, many experts agree,” Liberman said. “There is, however, direct harm to the economy, to daily operations and a not insignificant contribution to daily panic in the public.”
Liberman said he was working with “all the authorities” in order to get rid of the Green Pass and “maintain a normal life routine for all of us.”
Israelis are only allowed into many public and private facilities with a Green Pass.
Only approximately 24% of 5- to 11-year-olds have received at least one dose of the COVID vaccine, and just 12% have received two doses.
Also Tuesday, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz and Liberman announced that some 25-30 million rapid home test kits will be distributed for free throughout Israel.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/as-serious-covid-cases-near-500-finance-minister-calls-for-end-to-green-pass/